Cyber Risks · Cisco Talos

Threat Source newsletter (Oct. 7, 2021)

Summary: Cisco Talos reported that threat actors set up a phony Amnesty International website promising a tool to protect against NSO Group's Pegasus spyware, but the download installs the little-known Sarwent malware, a remote access tool that can also activate remote desktop protocol on the victim machine. Separately, SonicWall released a security update for its Secure Mobile Access 100 line of devices after disclosing CVE-2021-20034, a critical vulnerability with a severity score of 9.1 out of 10 that could let unauthenticated attackers remotely gain admin access.

Key Takeaway: The Amnesty impersonation turns a high-profile human rights report into bait, and the payload is a RAT that can switch on RDP - giving an adversary a direct path to the desktop. SonicWall's 9.1 flaw lands on a device already targeted by ransomware crews going after end-of-life versions.

Read the original at Cisco Talos ↗

Topics
Detection & Response
Mentions
CVE-2021-20034
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